20 degrees from tropic of ]cancer and capricorn

• An area drained by a river and the smaller rivers that flow into it.
• Rain water that drips from trees seeps into t\he ground and is stored as groundwater , thus the tropical rainforests are large water catchment areas.
• Impurities are trapped by the soil and flow]1s onto reservoirs.Thus improving the quality of the water.

• Forest absorb carbon dioxide form the atmosphere and release oxygen through photosynthesis
• Forest helps the earth to “Breath” so its called “Green lungs of the earth”
• 20% of earth oxygen is generated by the Amazon Forest
• Forest acts as the earth’s purifier.

• Rainforests is home to 2 million of the world’s plants , animals , insects and a variety of fungi.

• Tropical rainforest is the world’s largest pharmacy

• Less than 5% of the earth’s surface.
• Equatorial climate
• High temperatures
• High rainfall

1. Agriculture
2. Mining
3. Logging
4. Land Clearance for housing and industries.
5. Remaining rainforests are smaller and broken up into fragments.

• One of the reasons why logging is so popular is because of furniture and paper. The highest demand of logging is the demand for wooden flooring. Furniture like wardrobes , cabinets .Paper also requires a lot of wood. Paper is used for study and education.That is why the rainforest Is being deforested and logged.     

• Agriculture is the growing of crops and raising of animals to provide food. 
• Shifting cultivation is know as subsistence farming.
• It has been the traditional cause for deforestation.
• Shifting cultivators grow crops for their own use and consumption.
• They allow land to regain its fertility and for vegetation to regrow when they move to the next plot of land.
• Large scale commercial agricultural activities on plantations. 
• Large areas are burnt to clear area
• Crops are grown for cash and are sold to meet local and global needs.
• As a result the rate of deforestation has increased greatly.

• Furniture
• Timber flooring
• Paper cups
• Wood pulp

1. General Trend(1m)

• Increasing
• Decreasing
• Fluctuation
• Constant
• 
  

• Dip
• Peak

• Trees in the emergent layer are higher than most other trees and could go up to 50-60 meters
•  They have tall and straight barks with few branches at the top.
• There is also fewer animals In the emergent layer.

• They have a buttress roots to support the heavy weight of the tree
• They also have shallow roots to absorb the nutrients and water which are mostly found in the top layer in the soil.

• The rainforest is habitat to flora and fauna. The rainforest is home to 2million of the worlds
• The rainforests helps to maintain water supply by replenishing rain water through the water cycle. 
• The plants transpire and releases water vapour into the atmosphere which encourages cloud formation and rain.
• When the rainfalls , vegetation stops it from reaching the ground directly.
• This would then allow more water to seep slowly into the ground to become stored groundwater.
• Rainforests also helps to maintain the quality of water.Rainwater seeping into the ground is filtered by soil layers which trap impurities between the pore spaces resulting in clear groundwater.
• Vegetation cover intercepts rainwater to reduce its speed and flow.This prevents soil particles from being washed into rivers.
• Hence water collected In rivers are of better quality as it contains few sediments and impurities.
• Example ( The central Catchment Nature Reserve is the largest water catchment in Singapore

• Rainforest is home to 2million of the world’s plants , animals insects and a variety of fungi.
• Ample sunlight and rainfall allows plants to thrive which in becomes food to animals.
• The canopy is also a habitat where other. Plants can grow and animals can live in.
• Example(Amazon Basin).

• The rainforest is also a habitat to indigenous people. 60 million indigenous peopler wholly dependent on the tropical rainforest.
• Their tribes has been living in tropical rainforests for thousands of years
• The rainforest provides daily necessities 
• Food is obtained by either hunting and gathering crops.
• By destroying the rainforest, the indigenous people’s homes would be destroyed.
• Thousand years worth of culture and art would be destroyed also.

•  The trees in the emergent layer has a buttress roots.The buttress roots supports the heavy weight of the tree.
• The Root of most trees are also shallow. As the forest floor is dark and moist, it speeds up decomposition of leaf litter which would then provide nutrients for the trees.The roots are shallow so that the maximum amount of nutrients and minerals salts could be absorbed by the roots.

• As there is no wind in the canopy layer, the fruits and flowers of the plant has to be colourful and strong smelling. By having a colourful and strong smelling flower, insects would get attracted to it and help to pollinate the plant while also eating the fruit , helping the plant to disperse its seeds to ensure the continuity of its kind.

• The leaves of the trees in the emergent layer are broad. This increases the exposed surface to sunlight increasing the rate of photosynthesis.
• The leaves are also waxy and harry.As there is much sunlight , water would be loss quickly. The leaves waxy surface prevents excessive water loss from the environment.
• As fungi could grow on the leaves of the plant as a pesticide, the tip of the leaf is pointed to ensure that water flow is smooth so that there is no water left on the leaf which would then prevent fungi from growing on it.

• Loss of biodiversity 
• Loss of water catchment areas
• Increased risk of flooding, soil erosion and sedimentation
• Enhanced greenhouse effect

• Depletion of natural resources

• Effect on indigenous people

• Plants of medicinal value are lost when a single tree is cut down in a tropical rainforest.

• Changes in biodiversity may increase the likelihood of insect=born diseases.
• The rainforest may grow back after being deforested and if it does, the lack of nutrients in the soils may not be able to support the biodiversity that once existed On that land.

• Increased risk of flooding, soil erosion and sedimentation
• When Tree are cleared, the ground is left bare 
• Rainwater falls directly on the ground and flows over the surface more rapidly as surface runoff.
• This causes flooding in the surrounding areas.

• Protection of forested areas : Setting of laws to protect an area from unfavourable activities which might endanger the biodiversity and natural resources found in the rainforest. 
• Central Amazon Conservation Complex
• Largest protected area (60000km2) in the Amazon basin. 
• Highest biodiversity in the world
• Some of these areas conserve biodiversity through working with the indigenous communities.
• Reforestation
• The rainforest in the Singapore Botanic graders was reforested because more than 80% of its plants are real or endangered.
• Forests of Giants 
• Controlled logging
• The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural resources .
• Every tree that is logged is accounted for 
• Prevents total clearance of a forest
• Benefits shared with locals who help run this project
• Public education. 
• MT amazon Expeditions organises trips to parts 
• Trails and guided walks in the nature reserves to inform the public of the biodiversity of rainforests.
• Use the Internet to use as a tool for educating the public about the biodiversity.